Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz

The Monadology — the best of all possible worlds

The last universal genius — philosopher, mathematician, and polymath who, independently of Newton, invented the calculus and gave it the notation still used today. In metaphysics he conceived the universe as composed of monads, indivisible centres of perception, harmonized by God into 'the best of all possible worlds' — a claim Voltaire would satirize in Candide. His optimism, logic, and dream of a universal calculus of reasoning anticipate modern symbolic logic and computation.

Key works

• Monadology1714— The universe as a harmony of simple substances
  Treatise
• Theodicy1710— The defense of God and the best of all possible worlds
  Treatise
• New Essays on Human Understanding1704— His rationalist answer to Locke
  Treatise (published 1765)

Connections

External